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South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley said Wednesday she's looking for a fighter to replace outgoing Sen. Jim DeMint, but doesn't believe there is anyone who is as conservative as the Tea Party Republican.

CNN, the Associated Press and other news outlets reported that Haley has narrowed her choices down to five candidates, including former South Carolina first lady Jenny Sanford.

The Republican governor will appoint a replacement for DeMint, who is resigning in January to become president of the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank. DeMint's successor will serve until a special election is held in 2014. She gave no timeline for her decision, but told reporters it would be "soon."

"There is no question that I'm looking for a conservative person to fill those shoes, but we are never going to find someone as conservative and staunch as Jim DeMint," Haley told South Carolina reporters.

"At times, I've asked her opinion on things, or if I see her somewhere, I'll just say, 'Do you have advice for me?' " Haley said. "I do that with any former governor I see, as well, and so she's one of those people I look at. She's lived it. She's been through it. She's a confidante that I've always looked to to just tell me what I'm doing wrong and tell me what I'm doing right."

Haley's short list is said to also include Reps. Tim Scott and Trey Gowdy, former state attorney general Henry McMaster and Catherine Templeton, who heads the state Department of Health and Environmental Control.

In a video of Haley's comments posted on the website of WIS-TV, the governor said she does not believe lack of political experience disqualifies someone from the Senate appointment. "It's not how much political experience you have, it's about the fight," Haley said. "It's about the philosophical beliefs. It's about knowing what you're sent to Washington to do."

Sanford gave Haley a crucial endorsement during a hard-fought 2010 GOP primary, in which there were four candidates seeking the gubernatorial nomination. While Sanford has never run for office, she ran her ex-husband's congressional offices when he served in the U.S. House and was a top aide in his campaigns.

Sanford's personal popularity in South Carolina rose after it was learned Mark Sanford mysteriously left the state while he was governor to visit his mistress in Argentina.